Into The Black
by The Coyote King
Summary: 10 years after the Miranda broadcast,the New Alliance rules the 'verse. Serenity's under new command too, the formerly crazy genius River Tam. However can she survive out in the black when she's haunted by the shadows of her past?
1. Here's How It Is

Before we begin: This was essentially created out of boredom and me thinking about a few potential what if scenario's when it came to the friendly nieghboorhood Firefly 'verse and this is what I came up with.

I own no characters except the ones I create and you'll know pretty goram quick which ones belong to He-Who-Would-Be-Whedon.

Without further ado, enjoy

* * *

**Heres how it is:**

E_arth got used up so we terraformed a whole new galaxy of Earths_

_Some rich and flush with the new technologies_

_Some not so much_

_Central Planet, they formed the Aliiance and waged war to bring everyone under their rule._

_Few idiots tried to fight it among them, my friend Malcolm Reynolds._

_They lost and all was quiet for a time, until a Firefly class ship took on a moonbrain such as myself and my brother as crew_

_and until I remembered a little planet called Miranda_

_Turns out Alliance created the worse nightmares we ever seen_

_But me and the Crew of Serenity broadcast that message across the black and The Old Alliance was weakened and that made way for the New Alliance._

_New name same product as they publically fostered a new age of prosperity and secretly fostered an age of corruption as well so those would forget the Miranda broadcast…except for a few out there._

_My names River Tam, captain of Serenity_

_It's got a good crew, though it's gotten a little sparse of late_

_You got a job…we can do it_

_Don't much care what it is._


	2. Up From Under

**Planet:** _Hermes_ **Location:** _Corona Valley_

_

* * *

_She had always loved the color blue. Not the pale sickly blue, but the rich and vibrant blue. She used to have a dress that color, but that was gone and had been replaced by a form fitting blue top. Draped around her was a dark brown coat that had been given to her by an old friend of hers and her gun…where was her gun?

She felt an arid wind blow across her face as she looked down at her hand and as it clutching her gun. Why was that?

**"Riv?"** a voice nudged

**"Riv?"** a said quietly

**"River!"** A voice snapped as she suddenly came back down from the black. She turned and saw a few black crates with a New Alliance seal on it. To her right with his gun drawn stood a tall man. His skin was a dusky brown with a hint of bronze and he had a pale white scar going diagonally over his left eye. His muscles were evident through his rust colored shirt, a few buttons at the top loose. He wiped sweat of his brow with the sleeve of a black jacket he had on.

**"Now would not be time for one of your space out's Riv." **Said Darin Riser, her second-in-command as he returned his focus back to what his gun was pointed out.

Around both of them was a small semicircle of men, they're coats grey and tarnished badges on their lapels. These were the Enforcers of the Outer Rim. Sent by the New Alliance to try and help out the more primitive colonies. Within the first week most of them had either been killed or started using their position for they're own gain. They frequently kept the good supplies to themselves. So what were few crates of equipment stolen?

Judging by the rifles levered at them, it was a lot.

**"You are in possession of stolen goods of the New Alliance you are bound by law to stand down!" **said the bald headed guy in the center of the pack of them. "Let's all just be calm about this girlie

River then re-leveled her gun at the group and fired a warning shot at the group said **"Last time I got called girlie it didn't end so didn't end so well for those involved."**

**"I was there…girls got a nasty temper."** Darin said smirking **"I got the scars to prove it."**

The group shifted themselves uncomfortably for a moment and River used that time as softly she whispered into the micro com in her ear.

_"A.J, where the hell are you, we need a pick up…"_

_

* * *

_Flying a Firefly class ship with its hatch open was not a very advisable flying arrangement. If the pilot made the slightest error in movement, then it could send everything in the cargo hold flying out the hatch or worse send the craft into a crash spiral.

And with alarms blaring warnings in the cockpit the pilot was very prone to error. However Adjani Jayne Catchernum, better known as A.J was not worried. Incense being held up by a plastic stegosaurus wafted the smell of lilacs all around her. She tugged her short reddish hair for a moment and then continued to mute the outside sound_. _Her concentration was broken momentarily when her Captains voice came over the speaker

She let out a small growl and grabbed the com saying **"I'd have been here sooner, if you'd actually hire an actual goram mechanic for Serenity."**

She was fast approaching the pickup point **"Your live in 5….4…3…2…1...go!"**

**

* * *

**A.J voice came back into both River and Darin's coms

"_I'd be here sooner, if you'd actually hire an actual goram mechanic for Serenity."_

**"Actual mechanic, I'm kind of offended."** Darin said

**"****Why? your mechanical skills are essentially 'keep screwing around with the engine until something works."** River shot back casually as if they weren't being held at gunpoint.

"**Well then we have a lot in common Riv, because replace _the engine_ with _the plan_ and we have your leadership philosophy."** Darin shot back

The bald headed lawman shouted **"What are you two gabbin about?"**

In the ear com AJ's voice could be heard _"You're live in 5…4…"_

Darin turned to River and angled his head and said **"Kind of _chídùn de_ for a lawman ain't he?"**

"_3…2"_

River nodded **"_Wánquán de..._"**

"_1…Go!"_

With that their feet left the groud as they lept upward and launched themselves backward dropped as Serenity came flying low and to the ground. The hatch acting like a shovel, picking up a bunch of sand, rocks, and dirt along with the crates and the two of them.

The pair slid back into the cargo hold as Serenity took off. River struggled against the gravity as she got to the hatch controls and hit the glowing orange button. The hatch shut itself as A.J banked Serenity up into the sky amidst the rifle fire from the stunned Lawmen.

**"Catch the cargos in place, let's burn us the hell out of there."** River said

* * *

In the cockpit A.J whooped loudly and then pulled up on the controls hard as they took to the sky. A few minutes later they were in the black of space. Serenity engines glowed as they went to maximum burn and left the dust ball planet behind.


	3. It's Just Buisness

**Before we begin:** For those of you wondering if AJ has any relation to the man they call Jayne ,then you'd be right. Whta kind of relationship you ask? You'll find out soon enough.

* * *

_8 years ago_…

**Planet :** _Haven._

Shepard Book had always been a bit of an oddity to River. His belief in a book that made no logical sense had always been a point of difference between them. However today the Haven was being rebuilt in his honor. New settlers were coming here every day. Serenity had landed here for a few weeks, so the crew could relax for a while.

River sat along the wall of a school building holding a bouncy ball, that she used to play jacks with. She held it and twirled it about. A group of small children ran past her in the midst of a game of tag. One child saw River and stopped looking at her

**"What'cha doin?"** the child asked

River ignored the child and spun the marble in her hands **"The intersection of a plane with a sphere is a circumference if the plane intersects the sphere: this circumference can have different radius depending on the distance between the plane and the center of the circumference….."** she then turned to the kid that was standing across from her **" run."**

The child tilted his head in confusion.

**"Nothing…nothing…comes from the sky…like a stone…of fury." **She said and then yelled at the child **"RUN!"**

The child eyes widened and he took off.

A few minutes later, a flame appeared in the sky as the flame widened into a trail,as an escape pod was coming in very, very fast. It soon came crashing down, hard causing a huge scortch mark to blaze its path as it came to halt a few feet away from River.

She stood up and ran her hands over the hull of the escape pod as she closed her eyes and then concentrated.

Then reeled back holding her head in pain. Her knees buckled as blood ran from her nose.

The rest of the crew would find her later,in front of the open pod muttering harridly to herself

**"Nothing times nothing is nothing……nothing times nothing is nothing…."**

**

* * *

**_Present Day…_

**10 minutes from Atmo:**

**"Er de yi mǔ gǒu!."** A voice rang out throughout the halls of Serenity.

**"Quit whining."** River said as she stitched the last suture on a Darin's back. During their tricky maneuver out of danger. He had cut up his back on the slide back.

**"I'll do that once you stop missing the stitches and sticking me in the back! Aren't you s'posed to be a genius or somethin'"** Darin snapped.

**"Yes but that aside I'm still not my brother when it comes to medicine."**

**"That's for goram sure…you know it's are luck that our medic goes and settles planetside with our mechanic. "** Darin said jokingly as he pushed off the table and put his shirt back on. His voice softened for a moment as he said to River **" Hey, Riv…are you still takin your meds? You spaced out an awful long time back there."**

**"Gaps in thought is a common side effect of Diocortitriptiphane…"** River rattled off as she cleaned and disinfected the needle.

**"Don't pull the fact rattle right now River…I need to know."**

**"Yes..I'm still taking them."** River said rolling her eyes **" We good now?"**

**"Solid Riv, Solid."**

A.J's voice came over the com

_**"Coming in over Persephone, boy and girl, gonna be a little bumpy."**_

River gave a small roll of her eyes **" Such a good precursor to our meetin' today don't you think?**

Darin gave a grimace **" Have I ever told you how much I hate our client?"**

**"He's one of Serenity's oldest clients"**

**"It's just that accent, sounds so damn fake."**

**

* * *

  
**

**Dock:** _12A_ **Planet:** _Persephone_

As the Firefly-class ship roughly settled into the docking ports at Persephone, the hatch opened and River stepped out not too far behind was Darin with the ATV wheeling out the crate of equipment.

**"This deal goes through straight, we might actually have enough to get by on some light ferry work."** Darin said revving the engines slightly.

"**Should go through fine. I'll tell AJ to get us a few decent folk to ferry, you go on ahead." **River said turning back into the ship. Darin gave a light nod and then took off heading toward the drop off point.

AJ came out soon after as she looked at River and said **" What is it River?"**

River went close to AJ and said **" See if any passengers are looking for a ride,and if you can."** River then looked around suspiciously and then leaned in close as she whispered **_" make sure it's in the Outer Worlds."_**

**_

* * *

  
_**

Later both Darin and River sat in an well furnished house, the chairs they sat in were made of fake wood, but looked real. Across the way from them was a well dressed older man. Sitting on an elegantly crafted chair he would have seemed out of place had he not been sitting with three or four well armed thugs at his side.

**"You know…"** said a finely dressed older gentlemen eyeing the crates on his desk **" There was a time where I'd flat out refuse to take goods with an Alliance stamp on it. Had to be careful about it. Now with this New Alliance about…well let's just say that membership does have it's privileges."**

**"Well guess those little Medals of Valor trinkets that the Alliance handed out to you, really did you some good Badger."** River said nodding to the older gentlemen.

**"It's Lord Badger of Persephone now,"** he corrected **"..and yes it did. They had quite a few for your once captain had he not been a fool and declined them."**

**"Guess he had more sense to know when he was being bought off."** River said trying to conceal a harshness of voice and failing

_**"Anyway,"**_ Darin said breaking the cycle of back and forth** " We got the mining equipment you wanted from the Enforcers, now you can sit on it for a bit and wait until that mine's equipment breaks and sell this stuff back to them for outrageous profit."**

Badger smiled at Darin and said **" Always the more levelheaded of the two, very well then. Boys."** Badger said snapping his fingers as two of the thugs dropped a nice size bag at Darin's feet and he grabbed it up and opened it to make sure all the cash was where it was supposed to be. Satisfied the pair stood up and made their way out

**"Pleasure doing business with you." **Badger called after them

**"Yeah, yeah." **Darin said as they exited.

* * *

Walking back to where they parked the ATV Darin smiled **" Hell, that could have gone a great deal worse. Now we got enough cash to go easy for a bit. Ferrying rich folk around the Inner rim planets. This is gonna be great."**

**"About that…"** River said stopping.

Darin stopped as well as he looked at River for a minute before saying **" No Riv you didn't...."**

**"I asked AJ to get us Outer Rim Passengers."**

_**"Gāi sǐ dí suǒ yǒu xìng jiāo !"**_ Darin swore **" River you promised you'd stop this.."**

"**No you made me promise, there's a difference!"** She snapped back

**"Doesn't matter Riv, you promised! To me!"** Darin said matching her anger **" I thought we had an understanding that we don't use the p word with each other unless we mean it!"**

**"Look, I'm just….."** River said

**"Just nothing, the last time we went that far out, you were obsessed nearly ran the ship into the ground looking for him, remember? Because, if you don't I certainly do."** he said pointing to the scar on his left eye.

**"I..I just…"** River said ,her head bowing down the girl was at a lost for words, for a moment her strong and confident façade faded and she looked just like the broken girl Darin had met so many years ago. His anger faded slightly as he grasped her shoulder and breifly squeezed it before saying **" Fine, if we got any passengers, we'll take them to where they need to go, but I can't promise anything more."**

River looked up and their eyes met as she smiled and said **" Thanks."**

Darin rolled his eyes and laughed it off, the moment of anger past as he said **" Don't thank me yet, we aint seen what kind of passengers AJ picked up."**


End file.
